


Reports

by ChildOfTheBarricade



Category: Star Wars Original Trilogy
Genre: Adult Illiteracy, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Fluff, Illiteracy, Romance, Soft Han Solo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-12
Updated: 2021-01-12
Packaged: 2021-03-16 15:20:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,506
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28708803
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChildOfTheBarricade/pseuds/ChildOfTheBarricade
Summary: Han's been neglecting his administrative duties. Leia finds out why - and loves him anyway.
Relationships: Leia Organa/Han Solo
Comments: 7
Kudos: 38





	Reports

“Han, can you proofread this for me?” She thrust her datapad into his hands, slumping back in her seat.

Han looked down at the pad in his hand, displaying what he figured was some kind of report. “Sure, ah... I’ll take it with me. Chewie wanted me to look at somethin’ in the cockpit,” he said, starting to stand up.

“Can’t you check it now? I have to take it to Mon,” she snapped.

Leia was in the midst of a terrible week. She’d come down with some sort of bug that had her vomiting for half the day, and nursing a blinding headache for the rest - rather, she was insisting that it was a bug and refusing to take a pregnancy test which would, in about a week when she caved and took one, come back positive.

She was doing the work of about seven people at once and simultaneously being lauded as the face of the Alliance's victory over the Empire and vilified as Darth Vader’s offspring. So Han shut up, sat back down, and stared at the screen.

Han glanced at each word, hoping this would be convincing enough, before handing the device back to her. “It’s good.”

“Are the things I said about you correct?” She asked, looking over her writing again.

“Uh-huh,” Han nodded, hoping they were.

“I wasn’t sure about this part near the end,” she said, holding the datapad up to him again.

“No, it’s good. It’s fine,” Han shrugged. “What’s it for?”

"What do you think it's for? It's a marriage announcement, Han. It's to announce our marriage."

"Oh," Han nodded.

Leia narrowed her eyes at him before looking back down at the datapad. Her eyes flicked from side-to-side as she read over the report again. "You _didn't_ read this. There are three spelling mistakes!" She tapped aggressively at the screen while Han sat in silence. When she was done, she stood up, tucking the datapad under her arm. "I'm sorry to have inconvenienced you, Han. I know you're extremely busy," she said scathingly, looking him up and down as he sat in his boxers, fiddling with the control panel on the Dejarik table.

She stormed off the _Falcon_ , stomping down the boarding ramp, her boots echoing through the docking bay as she made her way to Mon's office.

-

Hours later, Han was in the _Falcon's_ cockpit, balancing precariously upside-down in his seat with his head under the control panel, trying to get at a problematic fuse while Chewie held the chair still and handed him tools.

"Han," Leia said brusquely, doing her best not to laugh as he tried to sit up but only succeeded in smacking his head and growling. She was still fuming, and laughing at this juncture would not help her cause.

With a little more care, Han climbed out from under the panel, straightening his shirt. "You still mad at me?" He asked with a wince.

"Yes," Leia said firmly, triggering a very speedy exit from Chewie. "This is important to me, Han. I'm announcing our marriage to the galaxy. At home…" she sighed. "You have to understand that this sort of thing might seem like a stupid formality to you, but it means a lot to me. And you made me feel like it wasn't worth your time."

Han looked at the floor. "I didn't know that's what it was," he said defensively. "Thought it was another trade report or something."

"Okay but then when I gave it to you and you saw that it said _'Announcing the marriage of Princess Leia Organa to General Han Solo,'_ you still couldn't be bothered reading it. Try again."

Han shrugged. "'M sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you."

"I accept your apology. But I'll be sleeping in my cabin tonight."

Han frowned deeply, trying to keep his breathing calm and his mouth shut.

"And Carlist says he's still waiting on your reports from the Corellia mission last month. Meanwhile I find you down here tinkering."

"I'm doin' repairs," he mumbled.

Leia stuck her hands on her hips. "You have to take these things seriously, Han. I know you think it's stupid. But it's important."

Han looked away from her. "I said I'm sorry."

Leia shot him a glare and turned on her heel, leaving him alone again. Chewie stuck his head in through the cockpit door and growled at Han.

"I am not telling her," Han snapped, throwing his tools down and storming off to his cabin.

-

The captain's cabin on the _Falcon_ had always been on the colder side, but pre-carbonite Han hadn't minded much. He usually ran a little warm anyway, and a blanket or two was always enough to cut through the chill. Post-carbonite Han, on the other hand, had trouble staying warm at the best of times, so his cabin was almost unbearable.

He climbed into bed, pulling four blankets over himself and trying to stop shivering. It may have been his imagination but the bunk definitely seemed colder without Leia in it. Han tossed and turned for what was probably close to an hour, before climbing out of bed. He stuffed his commlink in his pocket as he made his way down the boarding ramp.

If the sight of him walking through the halls of Home One in a pair of sleep pants and a ratty shirt bothered the handful of droids and smatterings of soldiers he met on the way up to Leia's cabin, they didn't mention it. When he reached her cabin door he hesitated before pressing the buzzer.

It took a minute for her to answer, and when she said "Organa," through the tinny speaker beside the door, her voice was thick with sleep.

"Sorry," Han said when he realised he must have woken her. "I ah… I'm cold," he said, instantly frowning. That definitely wasn't what he'd meant to say.

"Did you come here for a blanket?" She said drily without opening the door.

"Um… No, I… I wanted to explain," he sighed. "I mean… I don't want to. But Chewie said I should."

"Explain then," Leia said, still not letting him in.

"Can you… I don't wanna do this out here. Chewie's the only one who knows and… Will you just let me in?"

Leia paused for a moment before pressing the button beside the intercom. The door slid open to reveal her also dressed for sleep, a blanket wrapped around her. She stepped aside so Han could come in. "This had better be good. You woke me up," she said, sitting down at the small table in the centre of the cabin.

Han nodded, sitting opposite her. "I mean it. I've never told anyone this. I didn't even tell Chewie, he just worked it out," he said softly, fiddling with his hands.

Leia frowned when she noticed his hands trembling. "Han, what is it?" She asked gently.

He clenched his jaw, refusing to look up at her. "I didn't read your report because I can't," he said, the words coming out in a panicked rush.

"You can't… read?" She asked, moving her head in a vain attempt at meeting his eyes.

Han shook his head. "Chewie helps me read reports normally. And I have an add-on for my datapad that does talk-to-text so I can write. Only I can't find it anywhere right now. Which is why Rieekan's waitin' on my reports," he explained, picking at a small burn on his finger while he waited for her to say something.

"But… You speak so many languages," Leia said before realising how stupid that was.

Han gave her a bitter smirk. "Yeah. I speak 'em."

Leia stared at him for a few moments before carefully taking his hands in her own. "I'm sorry that you thought this would change a single thing, Han," she said softly.

He shrugged. "I shouldn't have been able to enlist. Only Madine didn't run any of the induction tests on me when I signed up."

"We don't run a particularly strict screening process around here," Leia chuckled.

Han managed a weak smile. "So it doesn't… It _doesn't_ change anything?" He asked.

"Why would it?" Leia shrugged. "I was once courted by a boy who was as dull as a dewback. But he was the son of admiralty so he'd had private tutors and been to expensive schools. He had an excellent education. But he was boring. And he didn't care about me, not really. This isn't a character flaw, Han, and it does not mean you're stupid. It just means nobody ever taught you."

He nodded, holding onto her hands. "There was no school where I grew up," he said softly.

They sat quietly for a few moments before Han started shivering again. "You _are_ cold," Leia frowned, gently rubbing his arms to get some warmth into them. "Will you come to bed?"

Han looked up at her then and nodded. She squeezed his hand and led him over to the bunk, climbing in and scooting over so he had space. He curled up beside her and she pulled the blankets over them both, snuggling into him.

"I'm sorry I yelled at you before," Leia whispered into his chest.

He chuckled and shook his head. "It's okay. You didn't know. So what _did_ you say about me in that report?"

Leia smiled. "I could help you read it yourself if you want?"

Han frowned. "I'm too old to learn something like that."

"Well, now you are being stupid. If you don't want to learn then that's fine. I'm happy to read all your reports to you. I can type yours up too if you like. But if you want me to teach you, I'd be happy to."

Han sighed, holding her close to him as his shivering subsided. "I guess I could try," he shrugged. "Not right now, though," he mumbled, closing her eyes.

Leia smiled and tipped her head up to gently kiss him. "We can talk about it tomorrow," she yawned as Han's breathing slowed and he fell into a peaceful sleep.

-

Han woke up slowly, yawning and stretching and rubbing his eyes before reaching for Leia, only her space was empty. He frowned, opening his eyes properly and blinking them into focus. Leia was sitting at the table, her datapad in one hand, a steaming cup of caf in the other.

"Morning," Han mumbled, his voice deep and croaky. He yawned again and tugged the blankets up higher.

"You slept well," Leia said fondly, getting up to pour him some caf.

"You're warm," Han shrugged, gratefully taking the mug from her as he sat up in bed. "So, I been thinkin'…" he began - Leia would normally make a joke about him needing to take it easy or to be careful not to hurt himself, but she stopped herself this morning - Han went on. "It's pretty stupid that my first mate reads my reports out to me in Shyriiwook and then I translate that into Basic just 'cause I can't read 'em myself."

Leia shrugged. "We make do with what we have around here."

Han nodded. "But I'd like to be able to do it myself."

Leia smiled and nodded, sipping at her caf. "I'd like to teach you. But no grumbling or complaining."

"I never grumble or complain," Han frowned as she climbed back into bed beside him with her datapad. "Don't you have meetings today?"

"Nope," she shook her head. "Just officer training."

"Oh," he said, feeling a little envious of the officers getting her time. "When's that?"

"Right now, hotshot," she smirked.

Han chuckled and relaxed, kissing her cheek.

"Do you know your letters?" She asked, opening up a few apps on her datapad.

He nodded. "I have to use 'em on navigational charts sometimes. I just don't know what they sound like."

Leia nodded, then frowned. "Wait… How do you read navigational charts?"

Han frowned back. "What do you mean?"

"I mean… there are words all over them. Labels for systems and asteroid fields and all sorts of things."

"Oh," Han said slowly. "Well, I guess I don't need the words on there. I know what the systems look like," he shrugged.

"All of them?" Leia asked incredulously.

Han shrugged again. "I've never come into a problem."

"Well that's… impressive," Leia said quietly. "Why don't we start with your name?"

Han winced, suddenly feeling extremely stupid and vulnerable. "Okay."

"I said no grumbling," Leia reminded him. "Your name starts with 'Herf', like nerf," she smirked, but Han was too busy concentrating to quip back. "That makes the 'huh' sound," she explained, showing him the letter on the datapad. "Come to think of it, I don't know that we're even spelling your name right. Anyway, this is how we spell it, next is 'Aurek'. That makes your 'ah' sound. Then a 'Nen'. That makes 'n'."

Han nodded, rubbing his face while he tried to concentrate. "You don't have time for this, Leia. It's stupid," he said suddenly.

"Han, relax. You're going to pick this up really quickly, I promise. Spell your name out for me," she said, handing him the datapad and snuggling into his side to offer him a little comfort.

Han slowly, dutifully, typed his name out on the pad and handed it back. Leia beamed and kissed his cheek.

"How do I do your name?" He asked softly, looking at the Aurebesh alphabet displayed on the pad. "I start with 'Leth', right?"

Leia smiled and nodded. "That's right. But the middle's a bit tricky. It's 'Esk', then 'Isk', then 'Aurek'."

Han frowned as he slowly typed each of the letters in. "Like that?" He asked when he was done, holding the datapad up so she could see.

Leia nodded and squeezed his hand. "Just like that. Do you want a break?"

"No," Han said firmly. "Show me what sounds they all make."

They stayed in bed all day, occasionally getting up and rummaging through Leia's tiny kitchenette for some rations to snack on, or to make another pot of caf, before climbing back under the blankets together and working on the datapad. Han _did_ pick it up quickly. Just like he picked up the controls on a new ship, or a brand new language, or the schematics to a place he'd never been before, or the proper way to braid Leia's hair.

By that evening, Han was reading simple words on his own and had stubbornly decided to work his way through the evening report, occasionally nudging Leia for help.

"You should rest," Leia said as she reached over him to turn the lights off.

"No no, I'm nearly done this first part," Han said, switching the light back on. "Gimme another minute."

She sighed and rested her head on his shoulder. "You're so stubborn," she grumbled, and Han laughed.

"Oh, _I'm_ stubborn?"

Leia hummed affirmatively. "You are," she yawned, closing her eyes and slowly drifting off to the sound of his heartbeat and the stylus tapping on the datapad screen.


End file.
